Media channel identification with multi-match detection and disambiguation based on single-match

ABSTRACT

Disclosed herein are methods and systems to help disambiguate channel identification in a scenario where fingerprint data of media content matches multiple reference fingerprints corresponding respectively with multiple different channels. Upon detecting such a multi-match, a server or other entity will perform disambiguation based on a determination that a segment of the fingerprint data matches a reference fingerprint corresponding with just a single channel, such as a reference fingerprint representing commercial or news programming content specific to just the single channel. The server or other entity will thereby determine the channel on which the media content being rendered by the media presentation device is arriving, so as to facilitate taking channel-specific action.

REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 15/179,143, filed Jun. 10, 2016, the entirety of which ishereby incorporated by reference. Further, this application claimspriority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/301,616, filedFeb. 29, 2016, the entirety of which is hereby incorporated byreference. In addition, the disclosure of U.S. Patent Application Pub.No. 2015/0181263 is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

A typical media presentation device operates to receive an analog ordigital media stream representing media content such as video and/oraudio content and to render and present the media content on a userinterface such as a display screen and/or an audio speaker. Examples ofsuch devices include, without limitation, televisions, computermonitors, projection systems, loudspeakers, headphones, and the like.

In many cases, such a media presentation device may be in communicationwith a receiver, such as a local set top box or other similar device ora remote server, that has access to numerous discrete channels of mediacontent and that can selectively deliver a given such channel's mediacontent to the media presentation device for playout.

By way of example, a television may be communicatively linked with acable-TV set top box that has access to a set of cable-TV channels, andthe set top box may be configured to receive user input selecting aparticular channel and to responsively tune to the selected channel andoutput to the television the media content of the selected channel, forpresentation of the media content to a user. As another example, aloudspeaker may be communicatively linked with a radio that has accessto a set of radio stations, and the radio may be configured to receiveuser input selecting a particular channel (station) and to responsivelytune to the selected channel and output to the loudspeaker the mediacontent of the selected channel, for presentation of the media contentto a user. And as still another example, a media presentation devicesuch as a display or speaker may be communicatively linked with acomputer that has access to a myriad of online streaming media channels,and the computer may be configured to receive user input selecting aparticular channel and to responsively initiate receipt and output ofthe selected media content and provide the media content to the displayand/or speaker for presentation to a user.

SUMMARY

When a media presentation device receives and renders media content, themedia presentation device may not have an indication of which channelcarried the media content. A receiver or other device that selectivelytunes to the channel and receives the media content and that providesthe media content to the media presentation device may have suchinformation, but the media presentation device that receives the mediacontent from that other device may not have such information. Forexample, if a television is coupled with a cable-TV set top box and auser selects a particular cable channel on the set top box, the set topbox may thereby have an indication of the selected channel as thechannel on which the set top box is then receiving a media content thatis being output to the television. But the television itself may merelyreceive and render the media content and may have no indication of theselected channel.

For various reasons, however, it may be useful to determine which ofvarious channels is the channel that carries the content being renderedby a media presentation device. Further, it may be useful to do sowithout receiving from a channel-selection device (e.g., receiver orremote control) a report of the channel to which that device is tuned,and perhaps without any involvement of the channel-selection device. Forinstance, it may be useful for the media presentation device itself,and/or a network server working in cooperation with the mediapresentation device, to determine the channel based on an evaluation ofthe media content that is being rendered (e.g., being already rendered,currently being rendered, or being in queue to be rendered) by the mediapresentation device. Given knowledge of the channel on which the mediacontent is arriving, the media presentation device, the network server,and/or another entity could then carry out one or more operations keyedto the channel, such as determining and recording an extent to whichmedia content of that channel is being played, selectively replacing apredetermined portion of the media content with alternative content(such as a replacement advertisement), or superimposing channel-specificcontent over the media content for presentation along with the mediacontent, among numerous other possibilities.

One method to determine the channel on which media content is arrivingis to have the media presentation device (or perhaps an adjunct device)and/or a network server generate a digital fingerprint of the mediacontent that is being rendered by the media presentation device, and tothen compare that fingerprint with reference fingerprint dataestablished for media content known to be provided on particularchannels.

For example, a network server or other such entity may establish orotherwise have access to reference data that includes a referencefingerprint of each of the channels available to provide media contentto the media presentation device (e.g., each of the channels within asubscription plan for a set-top box that supplies media content to themedia presentation device) and that maps each reference fingerprint tothe channel on which the media content is provided. As the mediapresentation device receives and renders given media content, the mediapresentation device may then generate a fingerprint of that mediacontent and, through a network communication interface, report thegenerated fingerprint to the network server for analysis. The networkserver may then compare the reported fingerprint with the referencefingerprint data to find a match with a reference fingerprint and tothereby determine that the channel on which the media content isarriving is the channel that the reference data maps with that referencefingerprint. Upon thereby determining the channel on which the mediacontent is arriving, the network server may then communicate anindication of the channel to the media presentation device, and themedia presentation device may take channel-specific action.Alternatively, the network server itself or another entity may takechannel-specific action based on the determined channel.

Unfortunately, however, a problem that can arise in this process is thatthe same media content may be provided on multiple different channels,whether concurrently or at different times, and so a fingerprint ofmedia content being rendered by a media presentation device may notcorrelate with just the channel on which the media content is arriving.For example, a sports game or political event might be broadcastconcurrently on multiple different channels, or a syndicated televisionor radio show might be broadcast on multiple different such channelsconcurrently or at different times. In these or other scenarios, if themedia presentation device is presenting such media content and generatesand provides a fingerprint of the media content, that fingerprint couldbe mapped to multiple reference fingerprints, and consequently thechannel-identification would be inconclusive.

As a specific example of this, consider a scenario where two differentvideo content providers both broadcast the same sports game, each on aseparate respective channel, and where an advertiser has a contract withjust one of the content providers to present a pop-up advertisement onthat provider's broadcast of the game. In this scenario, when a mediapresentation device is receiving and presenting one of these broadcasts,if the media presentation device generates and provides to the networkserver a fingerprint of the broadcast, the network server may determinethat the fingerprint matches both content providers' broadcasts of thegame, and so it would be unclear whether the media presentation deviceshould present the pop-up advertisement or not.

Disclosed herein are methods and systems to help disambiguate channelidentification in a scenario where fingerprint data of media contentmatches multiple reference fingerprints corresponding respectively withmultiple different channels. In accordance with the disclosure, anetwork server or other entity carrying out this analysis will detect amulti-match scenario by determining that the fingerprint of a firstportion of the media content at issue matches two or more referencefingerprints corresponding respectively with different channels. Facedwith the detected multi-match scenario, the entity will then performdisambiguation based on a further determination that the fingerprint ofa second portion of the media content at issue matches just one of thetwo or more reference fingerprints, thereby establishing that thechannel corresponding with the one matching reference fingerprint is thechannel on which the media content being rendered by the mediapresentation device is arriving, so as to facilitate takingchannel-specific action.

In implementation, although the first portion of the media content couldbe common to two or more channels, the second portion of the mediacontent could represent channel-distinguishing content specific to oneof those channels, such as local commercial content and newsprogramming. For example, two separate channels in separate markets oreven in the same market could carry the same programming generally, thusgiving rise to a possible multi-match scenario, but the channels coulddiffer from each other by carrying different respective local commercialadvertisements and/or news programming, thus supporting multi-matchresolution.

In practice, for instance, when the entity receives from the mediapresentation device a fingerprint of media content being presented bythe media presentation device, the entity could detect a multi-matchscenario by determining that the fingerprint matches two or morereference fingerprints corresponding respectively with differentchannels. But further, before or after detecting the multi-matchscenario, the entity could also determine that a portion of the receivedfingerprint matches a portion of just one of the reference fingerprints,corresponding with channel-distinguishing content such as localcommercial content or news programming. And the entity could thereforeconclude that the channel carrying that channel-distinguishing contentis the channel on which the media content being rendered by the mediapresentation device is arriving.

Accordingly, disclosed is a method that involves taking action based ona channel determined through disambiguation based on a single-match,with respect to commercial content, news programming, or otherchannel-distinguishing content. The method includes a computing systemdetermining that a fingerprint of a first segment of media content beingrendered by a media presentation device matches multiple referencefingerprints each corresponding with a different respective channel.Further, the method includes, responsive to at least the determiningthat the fingerprint of the first segment matches the multiple referencefingerprints each corresponding with a different respective channel,performing disambiguation based at least in part on a determination thata fingerprint of a second segment of the media content being rendered bythe media presentation device matches a reference fingerprintcorresponding with just a single channel, the disambiguationestablishing that the media presentation device is receiving the mediacontent on the single channel. And the method includes taking actionbased on the establishing that the media presentation device isreceiving the media content on the single channel.

Further, the disclosed method could take other forms as well. Forexample, the method could include a computing system comparing (i) queryfingerprint data representing sequential time segments of media contentbeing rendered by a media presentation device with (ii) referencefingerprint data respectively for each of a plurality of known channelsof media content. The method could then include, based on the comparingwith respect to a first one or more of the time segments of the mediacontent being rendered by the media presentation device, the computingsystem detecting a multi-match, where the media content rendered by themedia presentation device matches multiple ones of the plurality ofchannels of media content. And the method could further include, basedon the comparing with respect to a second one or more of the timesegments of the media content being rendered by the media presentationdevice, the computing system detecting a single-match, where the mediacontent rendered by the media presentation device matches just a singleone of the multiple channels of media content.

The method could then include the computing system using the detectedsingle-match to disambiguate the detected multi-match, therebyestablishing that the single channel of media content is the channelcarrying the media content being rendered by the media presentationdevice. And the method could include taking action based on theestablishing that the single channel is the channel carrying the mediacontent being rendered by the media presentation device.

Still further, disclosed is a system including a network communicationinterface, a processing unit, non-transitory data storage, and programinstructions stored in (e.g., on) the non-transitory data storage andexecutable by the processing unit to carry out various operations. Theoperations include receiving from a media presentation device, via thenetwork communication interface, a fingerprint of media content beingrendered by the media presentation device. Further, the operationsinclude determining that the received fingerprint matches multiplereference fingerprints each corresponding with a different respectivechannel. And the operations include, responsive to determining that thereceived fingerprint matches the multiple reference fingerprints eachcorresponding with a different respective channel, performingdisambiguation based at least in part on a determination that a segmentof the received fingerprint matches a reference fingerprintcorresponding with just a single channel, the disambiguationestablishing that the single channel carries the media content beingrendered by the media presentation device. And further, the operationsinclude taking action based on the establishing that the single channelcarries the media content being rendered by the media presentationdevice.

These as well as other aspects, advantages, and alternatives will becomeapparent to those of ordinary skill in the art by reading the followingdetailed description, with reference where appropriate to theaccompanying drawings. Further, it should be understood that thedescriptions provided in this summary and below are intended toillustrate the invention by way of example only and not by way oflimitation.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a simplified block diagram of an example system in whichvarious disclosed principles can be applied.

FIG. 2 is a simplified block diagram of an example network arrangementin which a media presentation device communicates with a network serverto facilitate implementing various disclosed principles.

FIG. 3 is a timing diagram illustrating multiple reference streams, aquery media stream, and fingerprint timeslots.

FIG. 4 is a flow chart depicting operations that can be carried out inaccordance with the present disclosure.

FIG. 5 is another flow chart depicting operations that can be carriedout in accordance with the present disclosure.

FIG. 6 is a simplified block diagram of an example network server.

FIG. 7 is a simplified block diagram of an example media presentationdevice.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring to the drawings, FIG. 1 is a simplified block diagram of anexample system in which various disclosed principles can be applied. Itwill be understood, however, that this and other arrangements andprocesses described herein can take various other forms. For instance,elements and operations can be re-ordered, distributed, replicated,combined, omitted, added, or otherwise modified. Further, it will beunderstood that functions described herein as being carried out by oneor more entities could be implemented by and/or on behalf of thoseentities, through hardware, firmware, and/or software, such as by one ormore processing units executing program instructions or the like.

As shown in FIG. 1, the example system includes one or more mediacontent sources 12 (e.g., broadcasters, web servers, etc.), one or moremedia content distributors 14 (e.g., multi-channel distributors, such ascable providers, satellite providers, over-the-air broadcast providers,web aggregators, etc.), one or more media content receivers 16 (e.g.,cable receivers, satellite receivers, over-the-air broadcast receivers,computers or other streaming media receivers, etc.), and one or moreclients or media presentation devices 18 (e.g., televisions or otherdisplay devices, loudspeakers or other audio output devices, etc.)

In practice, for instance, the media content sources 12 could benational broadcasters, such as ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, HBO, and CNN, themedia content distributors 14 could be local affiliates and/or otherlocal content distributors in particular designated market areas (DMAs),and the receivers 16 and media presentation devices 18 could then besituated at customer premises, such as homes or business establishments.With this or other arrangements, the content sources 12 could delivermedia content to the content distributors 14 for distribution toreceivers 16 at customer premises, and the content distributors coulddistribute the media content to the receivers 16 on discrete channels(e.g., particular frequencies). Each receiver could then respond to userinput or one or more other triggers by tuning to a selected channel andoutputting to a media presentation device 18 the media content that isarriving on the selected channel. And the media presentation device 18could receive and render the media content (e.g., display or otherwisepresent the content).

In this arrangement, as the media presentation device receives andrenders this media content, the media presentation device may have noindication of the channel on which the media content is arriving, i.e.,of the channel to which the receiver is tuned. Rather, the mediapresentation device may be configured simply to receive the mediacontent as a media stream from the receiver and to render the receivedmedia content. Per the present disclosure, however, the mediapresentation device may be in communication with a network server andmay work with the network server to facilitate identification of thechannel and thus to facilitate taking useful channel-specific action.

FIG. 2 illustrates an example network arrangement in which a mediapresentation device 18 is in communication with a network server 20 viaa network 22, such as the Internet. In practice, the media presentationdevice 18 may sit as a node on a local area network (LAN) at customerpremises, with the media presentation device having an assigned InternetProtocol (IP) address on the LAN and the LAN having an IP address on theInternet. Further, the network server 20 may also be accessible at an IPaddress on the Internet. With this arrangement, the media presentationdevice may initiate and engage in IP communication with the networkserver via the Internet, to report a fingerprint of media content beingrendered by the media presentation device, so as to facilitate channelidentification and associated action.

As discussed above, the network server 20 or another entity operating inaccordance with the present disclosure could establish or have access toreference data 24 for media content that is carried or scheduled to becarried on at least each of various channels accessible to the mediapresentation device 18. The reference data, which could be stored in arelational database or other form, could include a respective referencefingerprint for each channel, perhaps a reference fingerprint stream ofmedia content that was most recently carried by the channel (e.g., on asliding window basis covering a most recent period of time).Alternatively or additionally, the reference data could include arespective reference fingerprint (e.g., reference fingerprint stream) ofeach media content program (e.g., television broadcast, radio broadcast,streaming media file, etc.) that is available and/or scheduled to becarried on a particular channel. As such, the reference data could mapeach reference fingerprint to a channel on which the associated mediacontent (i.e., the content uniquely identified by the referencefingerprint) is or may be carried.

In mapping reference fingerprints to channels, the reference data couldcharacterize the channels by various attributes, to help distinguish thechannels from each other. For example, where a receiver or other suchdevice provides multiple different channels selectable by channelnumber, the reference data could characterize the channels by theirrespective channel numbers. And as another example, where each channelcarries a particular content source's content, such as the content ofone of a particular broadcaster for instance, the reference data couldcharacterize the channels by their respective content sources'identities. Still further, where more than one content distributor(e.g., multichannel distributor) distribute content sources' content,the reference data could characterize the channels by their respectivecontent distributors' identities. In practice, the reference data couldcorrelate each reference fingerprint with one or more of these or otherattributes.

The network server 20 or other entity operating in accordance with thepresent disclosure could establish some or all of this reference data byanalyzing media content arriving on each of the various channels (e.g.,at least the media content arriving on each of various channels that areavailable to a receiver that serves the media presentation device). Tofacilitate this, as shown, the server could include or be interconnectedwith one or more receivers 16 that are configured to receive mediacontent from one or more of the media content distributors 14 on variouschannels in much the same way that receivers would be configured toreceive content at customer premises. For instance, the server couldinclude or be interconnected with one or more cable-TV set top boxes,radios, computers, or other media receivers, or could be configured toemulate one or more such receivers. The server could then be configuredto receive and analyze the respective media content arriving on eachchannel and to generate for each channel a reference fingerprint of thechannel's media content, using any media fingerprinting process nowknown or later developed (e.g., computing a hash on a per frame or otherbasis, or otherwise identifying, extracting and digitally representingcomponent features unique to the media content).

In practice, the server could be configured to receive concurrently onmultiple such channels (perhaps all of the channels) and to analyze andgenerate respective fingerprints for the channels in parallel, or theserver might be configured to hop from channel to channel, possiblyrepeatedly cycling through the channels, to analyze and generate arespective fingerprint for each channel. Further, the server couldcontinue to do this in real-time, saving a respective fingerprint of atleast a most recent time window of media content for each channel, forreference. And the server could record each channel's referencefingerprint in the reference data in association with a characterizationof the channel (e.g., with attributes such as those noted above) andtimestamp information indicating a time of receipt of the associatedmedia content. Here, the server would have knowledge of each channel(e.g., channel number), just as a receiver would normally have knowledgeof the channel to which the receiver is tuned. Further, the server mayhave access to guide information or other such data specifyingattributes of each such channel (e.g., content source identity, contentdistributor identity, etc.), so that the server can determine and recordchannel attributes respectively for each reference fingerprint.

Alternatively or additionally, the server could receive or perhapsestablish such reference fingerprints for media content programs thatare available or scheduled to be provided on particular channels. Forinstance, providers or distributors of various media content programscould generate reference fingerprints for the media content programs,again using any media fingerprinting process now known or laterdeveloped, and those reference fingerprints could be provided to theserver. Alternatively, the server could receive advance copies of themedia content programs and could itself generate such referencefingerprints. Further, the server could receive or determine fromprogram guide information the channel on which the media content programis available or scheduled to be provided, and perhaps a day and time atwhich the media content is scheduled to be provided. The server couldthen record each media content program's reference fingerprint in thereference data in association with the channel on which the mediacontent program is available or scheduled to be carried, likewise withassociated channel attributes, and perhaps in association with a day andtime at which the media content program is scheduled to be provided.

Given this or other such reference data, when the server is presentedwith a fingerprint of media content that was received on an unknownchannel, the server could match the fingerprint with one of the storedreference fingerprints, using any fingerprint matching process now knownor later developed, and could thereby conclude that the media content atissue arrived on the channel that the reference data maps to thematching reference fingerprint. Thus, if the server is faced with afingerprint of media content that is being rendered by the mediapresentation device 18, the server could compare the fingerprint withthe reference fingerprints in the reference data. And if the serverthereby finds a matching reference fingerprint, then the server couldidentify the channel that the reference data maps with the matchingreference fingerprint and could conclude that that is the channel onwhich the media presentation device is receiving the media content(i.e., that that is the channel carrying the media content beingrendered by the media presentation device). In turn, the server couldresponsively take a channel-specific action based on the identifiedchannel, or cause or enable one or more other entities to take achannel-specific action based on the identified channel.

To facilitate this, the media presentation device 18 or another entitycould be configured to generate a fingerprint of the media content thatis being rendered by the media presentation device and to transmit thefingerprint to server 20 for analysis.

For instance, as shown in FIG. 2, the media presentation device couldinclude a fingerprint generator 26, which could be configured togenerate a digital fingerprint of media content being rendered by themedia presentation device. Such a fingerprint generator could beconfigured to generate the fingerprint of media content as the mediapresentation device is receiving the media content on a channel from areceiver 16 and/or as the media presentation device is processing themedia content for presentation. As such, the fingerprint generator couldreceive as input a copy of the media content arriving at the mediapresentation device from the receiver and/or being processed forpresentation by the media presentation device, and to apply any mediafingerprinting process now known or later developed to generate afingerprint of the media content.

In practice, the fingerprint generator could be configured to generatesuch a fingerprint as a fingerprint stream on an ongoing basis, such ason a per frame basis (e.g., per key-frame basis) or other basis. And themedia presentation device could be configured to transmit thefingerprint via network 22 to a server 20 for analysis. By way ofexample, the media presentation device could be configured toperiodically or from time to time transmit to the server a fingerprintrepresenting a latest frame, series of frames or other segment orportion of the media content being rendered by the media presentationdevice. In particular, the media presentation device could generate amessage carrying the latest generated fingerprint, along with one ormore timestamps and/or other such data as well as an identifier of themedia presentation device, and could transmit the message to theserver's IP address. And the server may thereby receive the fingerprintfor analysis.

Alternatively, the media presentation device could transmit to theserver, and the server could thus receive, various data regarding themedia content being rendered by the media presentation device, likewiseon an ongoing basis or other basis, to enable the server itself oranother entity to generate a fingerprint of the media content beingrendered by the media presentation device. For example, the mediapresentation device could transmit to the server portions of the mediacontent being rendered by the media presentation device, such asindividual frames (e.g., snapshots) or other segments of the mediacontent. And the server could apply any media fingerprinting process nowknown or later developed to generate a fingerprint of the media contentfor analysis.

Through the process described above, the server could then compare thefingerprint of the media content being rendered by the mediapresentation device with the reference fingerprints in the referencedata, using any digital fingerprint comparison process now known orlater developed. And as noted above, if the server thereby finds amatching reference fingerprint, the server could determine the channelthat the reference data maps with the matching reference fingerprint andcould conclude that the determined channel is the channel carrying themedia content being rendered by the media presentation device.

In response to thereby determining the channel at issue, the servercould then take, or cause to be taken, one or more channel-specificactions based on the determination of the channel. In particular, theserver itself could take action based on the channel determination, orthe server could signal to another entity, perhaps to the mediapresentation device, to cause the other entity to take action based onthe channel determination.

For example, the server could record the fact that the mediapresentation device is presenting content of that particular channel, aspart of a channel rating or analytics system to measure the extent towhich particular channels are being presented by media presentationdevices. For instance, the media presentation device could regularly(e.g., periodically) report to the server a fingerprint of the mediacontent that the media presentation device is rendering, and the servercould carry out processes such as those discussed herein to determinethe channel being rendered. Each time the server thus determines that achannel is being rendered, the server could add to a count or otherstatistic of the channel being rendered, as data to indicate the extentto which that channel is being presented. Further, these counts or otherstatistics could be per media presentation device (as device-specificviewing analytics), indicating the extent to which the mediapresentation device presents the channel at issue.

As another example, the server could responsively cause the mediapresentation device to present supplemental content, such as a pop-upadvertisement as discussed above, a commercial break, or a channelidentification, among other possibilities, possibly as a replacement forone or more portions of the media content. For instance, given knowledgeof the channel at issue, the server could generate or select (e.g., fromserver data storage) particular supplemental media content associatedspecifically with the determined channel (and perhaps further based onprofile data (e.g., device-specific viewing analytics) associated withthe particular media presentation device) and could transmit thesupplemental media content to the media presentation device for themedia presentation device to present in conjunction with the mediacontent that the media presentation device is receiving from thereceiver. The media presentation device could thus receive thesupplemental media content from the server and present it in conjunctionwith the media content that the media presentation device is receivingfrom the receiver.

In practice, this process could involve the server receiving inreal-time from the media presentation device a fingerprint of the mediacontent being rendered by the media presentation device and the serverdetermining that the received fingerprint matches a referencefingerprint of media content that the server is concurrently receiving(or has scheduled for the same time) on a known channel.

In some cases, however, there may be a time difference between when themedia presentation device renders the media content and timestamps andtransmits the fingerprint to the server and when the server receives themedia content on the known channel and otherwise has the referencefingerprint timestamped. The server could account for this timedifference by comparing the received fingerprint over a sliding windowof the reference fingerprint or vice versa. Further, the server couldaccount for this time difference when taking action in response to adetermined match between the received fingerprint and the referencefingerprint. For example, if the media presentation device receives themedia content sufficiently earlier than the server's timestamp for thecontent (e.g., more than a few seconds earlier), the server could stillidentify a fingerprint match and could record analytics data. But inresponse to detecting that time difference, the server might forgohaving the media presentation device present associated supplementalcontent, to help avoid a situation where the media presentation devicepresents the supplemental content too late (e.g., out of sync) from auser's perspective. On the other hand, if the server detects afingerprint match for a sufficient period of time and/or determines thatthe matching content will continue, the server may have the mediapresentation device present supplemental content even when faced withsuch a time difference.

In any event, through these or other such processes, a network server orother entity can determine the channel on which the media presentationdevice is receiving the media content at issue. And once the entitydetermines the channel, the entity may then take action based on thechannel determination. Alternatively, the entity could signal to anotherentity, perhaps back to the media presentation device, to cause theother entity to take action based on the channel determination. Otherexamples are possible as well.

In line with the discussion above, the server 20 or other entity thathas access to reference data as noted above could be configured toidentify multi-match scenarios, perhaps by detecting among the referencedata various reference fingerprints that match each other and that matcha fingerprint of media content being rendered by the media presentationdevice.

In one implementation, for instance, the server could regularly analyzethe reference data in search of multi-match scenarios, comparing pairsof reference fingerprints in the reference data using any now known orlater developed media fingerprint matching process, in an effort to findreference fingerprints that match each other. Upon finding each suchmatch of at least two of the reference fingerprints, the server couldthen flag the reference fingerprints as being a multi-match group. Sucha flag could indicate that there will be a potential ambiguity if thefingerprint of media content being rendered by the media presentationdevice matches any of the reference fingerprints in the flaggedmulti-match group. The server could flag the reference fingerprints asbeing a multi-match group in various ways. For instance, the servercould cross-reference the reference fingerprints of the multi-matchgroup in the reference data, to indicate that they are members of amulti-match group. Alternatively, the server could store a single copyof the reference fingerprint and associate that copy with variouschannels on which the media content represented by the referencefingerprint is carried.

With this implementation, when the server receives from a mediapresentation device a fingerprint of media content being rendered by themedia presentation device and the server determines that the receivedfingerprint matches a reference fingerprint, the server could thenreadily determine from the reference data whether a multi-matchsituation exists. If the matching reference fingerprint is not flaggedas being a member of a multi-match group, then the server could concludethat a single-match situation (rather than a multi-match situation)exists, in which case, as discussed above, the server could then readilydetermine from the reference data the channel associated with thematching reference fingerprint and could conclude that that is thechannel carrying the media content being rendered by the mediapresentation device. Whereas, if the matching reference fingerprint isflagged as being a member of a multi-match group, then the server couldconclude that a multi-match situation (rather than a single-matchsituation) exists, in which case the server may need to perform adisambiguation process to help identify the channel at issue from amongthose associated with the reference fingerprints of the multi-matchgroup.

Alternatively, in another implementation, the server could identify amulti-match group at the time the server receives a fingerprint from themedia presentation device. For instance, when (e.g., as) the serverreceives the fingerprint from the media presentation device, the servercould compare the received fingerprint with all of the referencefingerprints in the reference data. If the server thereby detects thatthe received fingerprint matches only one of the reference fingerprints,then the server could conclude that a single-match situation (ratherthan a multi-match situation) exists, in which case the server couldthen readily determine from the reference data the channel associatedwith the matching reference fingerprint and could conclude that that isthe channel carrying the media content being rendered by the mediapresentation device. Whereas, if the server detects that the receivedfingerprint matches two or more of the reference fingerprints, then theserver could conclude that a multi-match situation (rather than asingle-match situation) exists, in which case the server may need toperform a disambiguation process to help identify the channel at issuefrom among those associated with the reference fingerprints of themulti-match group.

Note that the process of detecting a multi-match situation involving twoor more reference fingerprints could be performed even if the tworeference fingerprints represent the same media content carried on twodifferent channels at a time delay relative to one another, i.e., wherethe presentation of the media content on one of the channels is timeshifted in relation to presentation of the same media content on anotherone of the channels. The fingerprint matching process could account forthis time shifting and could still find a match if the fingerprintsotherwise match each other, such as by comparing one fingerprint over asliding window with the other fingerprint. For instance, the process offinding matching reference fingerprints within the reference data couldinvolve searching for reference fingerprints that match one another andare presented and/or scheduled at respective times that are within athreshold time interval of each other.

As noted above, when the server or other entity carrying out thisanalysis detects that the fingerprint of the media content beingrendered by the media presentation device matches multiple referencefingerprints corresponding with multiple channels, the entity couldapply a disambiguation process to help determine which of the channelsassociated with the multi-match group is the actual channel carrying themedia content being rendered by the media presentation device.

In accordance with the present disclosure, the disambiguation processcan be based on a further determination that a portion of the receivedfingerprint, or a fingerprint of a portion of the media content beingrendered, represents channel-distinguishing content specific to just oneof the multi-match group members. In particular, although a comparisonof fingerprints may establish that the received fingerprint generallymatches each fingerprint of the multi-match group, a further comparison(of a portion before or after) could establish that the receivedfingerprint matches just one of the reference fingerprints, therebysupporting a conclusion that that the channel corresponding with thatone reference fingerprint is the channel carrying the media contentbeing rendered by the media presentation device.

In an example implementation, for instance, the server may receive overtime from the media presentation device a sequence of fingerprintsegments representing a corresponding sequence of segments of mediacontent being rendered by the media presentation device. As the serverreceives those fingerprint segments from the media presentation device,the server may compare the received fingerprint segments with segmentsof the reference fingerprints and thereby detect a multi-match scenario,because the same media content is carried on the channel being receivedby the media presentation device and on the channels associated with themembers of the multi-match group. To resolve this multi-match scenario,the server may then determine that one or more others of the receivedfingerprint segments match just a single one of the multi-match groupreference fingerprints, perhaps because a commercial break, newsprogramming, or content being rendered by the media presentation deviceis specific to the channel at issue and is present in just a single oneof the channels associated with members of the multi-match group.

FIG. 3 is a timeline illustration of several media streams andfingerprint timeslots to help explain how this could work in practice.In particular, FIG. 3 depicts two reference media streams 30, 32 and onequery media stream 34, and example fingerprint timeslots 36. Referencemedia streams 30, 32 could be media streams carried on respective knownchannels, and query media stream 34 could be a media stream received andrendered by media presentation device 18 on an unknown channel.Fingerprint timeslots 36 could then represent time segments for whichfingerprints of the respective media streams could be generated, on asliding window basis for instance. In a representative implementation,server 20 may thus store reference fingerprint data defining a sequenceof fingerprints or fingerprint segments over the course of eachreference media stream. And server 20 may receive from mediapresentation device 18 query fingerprint data defining a sequence offingerprints or fingerprint segments over the course of the media streambeing rendered by the media presentation device.

In the example shown in FIG. 3, both of the reference media streams 30,32 include the same content as each other, “CONTENT 1,” from time T₁ totime T₂ and also include the same content as each other, “CONTENT 2,”from time T₃ to time T₄. However, from time T₂ to time T₃, the referencemedia streams 30, 32 include different content than each other, withreference media stream 30 including “CONTENT A” and reference mediastream 32 including “CONTENT B”. An example of this arrangement could bewhere “CONTENT 1” and “CONTENT 2” are portions of programming that issimulcast on two separate channels as media streams 30, 32, but where,from time T₂ to T₃, the channels carry different commercial breaks ornews programs than each other, one channel carrying “CONTENT A” and theother channel carrying “CONTENT B”.

As further shown by way of example in FIG. 3, from time T₁ to time T₂and from time T₃ to time T₄, the query media stream 34 includes content(“CONTENT 1” and “CONTENT 2”) that matches the content of both referencemedia streams 30, 32. Thus, a comparison of the query fingerprint datawith the reference fingerprint data with respect to time range T₁-T₂and/or time range T₃-T₄ (possibly accounting for time shifting) couldlead the server to detect a multi-match situation, because thefingerprint data representing the query media stream 34 would match thefingerprint data representing both of the reference media streams 30,32.

As additionally shown, however, from time T₂ to time T₃, the query mediastream 34 includes content (“CONTENT A”) that matches the content ofreference media stream 30 but that does not match the content ofreference media stream 32. Thus, a comparison of the query fingerprintdata with the reference fingerprint data with respect to time rangeT₂-T₃ could lead the server to detect a single-match situation among themulti-match group members, because the fingerprint data representing thequery media stream would match the fingerprint data representingreference media stream 30 but would not match the fingerprint datarepresenting reference media stream 32.

In accordance with the present disclosure, as the server 20 receives thequery fingerprint data from the media presentation device, the servermay thus detect a multi-match situation based on a comparison of one ormore segments of the query fingerprint data (representing one or moresegments of the media content being rendered by the media presentationdevice) with one or more segments of the reference fingerprint data. Butthe server may further detect a single-match situation based on acomparison of one or more other segments of the fingerprint data(representing one or more other segments of media content being renderedby the media presentation device) with one or more other segments of thereference fingerprint data. And the server may use the detectedsingle-match situation as a basis to disambiguate the multi-matchsituation, so as to determine which channel carries the media contentbeing rendered by the media presentation device.

In an example implementation, for instance, if the server receives fromthe media presentation device fingerprint data that the mediapresentation device generates for sequential time segments of the mediacontent being rendered by the media presentation device, then the servermay determine that the received fingerprint data representing a firstone or more such time segments indicates a multi-match situation, asthere are two or more reference fingerprints that match the receivedfingerprint. Moving along in time, however, the server may thendetermine that the received fingerprint data representing a next one ormore such time segments matches just one of the reference fingerprintsof the multi-match group, since at this point in time, the channels areproviding different content (e.g., different local commercials or newsprogramming) than each other. Based on this analysis of thefingerprints, the server may thereby conclude that the receivedfingerprint matches just that one reference fingerprint, and the servermay conclude that the channel that the reference data maps with that onereference fingerprint is the channel on which the media presentationdevice is receiving the media content.

Continuing in time, the server may then detect that the receivedfingerprint data representing still a next one or more time segments ofthe media content again matches two or more of the referencefingerprints. However, given that the server had already identified thechannel at issue based on the inclusion of the channel-distinguishingcontent, the server may retain that conclusion. In this way, the servermay effectively use a single-match history for one of the channels of amulti-match group as a basis to disambiguate an earlier or latermulti-match situation for query fingerprints received from the samemedia presentation device.

In practice, the reliability of this process may depend on how much timehas passed between detecting the single-match and detecting themulti-match. If only several seconds or possibly only several minuteshave passed, then basing the channel identification on the single-matchmay be more reliable than if, say, an hour or so has passed. Further,the server could also perform other analysis to determine that thechannel-distinguishing content (e.g., local commercial) was within orassociated with the same media content program currently being analyzed,which could additionally justify consideration of that single-match as abasis to disambiguate a multi-match.

Considered another way, this process may thus involve the serverdetecting for the received fingerprint data a single-match followed by amulti-match, and the server using the single-match as a basis todisambiguate the multi-match; and/or the process may involve the serverdetecting for the received fingerprint data a multi-match followed by asingle-match, and the server using the single-match as a basis todisambiguate the multi-match. Further, the process may involve theserver detecting for the received fingerprint data a multi-match,followed by a single-match, and then followed again by a multi-match,and the server using the intervening single-match as a basis todisambiguate the earlier and/or later multi-match. In this process, thesingle-match could be due to inclusion of a channel-distinguishingcontent such as local commercial or news programming content, amongother possibilities.

In a specific example implementation, if the server has pre-establisheda multi-match group of reference fingerprints as discussed above, theserver could evaluate the pre-established multi-match group and identifyone or more time segments that differ between members of the group, soas to facilitate the present disambiguation process. For instance, ifthe multi-match group members are fingerprints representing referencemedia streams 30, 32 of FIG. 3, the server could further compare thereference fingerprints and determine that they differ from each otherduring the period T₂ to T₃. The server could then flag that time periodof the multi-match group as representing a difference between themulti-match group members. And when the server later detects that aquery fingerprint from the media presentation device matches both ofthose reference fingerprints, the server could specifically considertime period T₂ to T₃, to determine which reference fingerprint the queryfingerprint matches, and to facilitate multi-match disambiguation.

Further still, upon determining the time period ofchannel-distinguishing content (e.g., the period T₂ to T₃) amongmulti-match group members, the server could flag that time period (e.g.,the start of the period, T₂) as a time period when disambiguation couldbe performed. As such, when the server then detects a multi-matchsituation with respect to the multi-match group, the server coulddetermine the timing of a next-occurring instance ofchannel-distinguishing content for the channels involved, and the servercould instruct the media presentation device to provide a queryfingerprint representing that time-portion of the media content. Theserver could thus receive from the media presentation device the queryfingerprint for that time-portion of the media content and could usethat query fingerprint as a basis to perform disambiguation and thus toresolve the multi-match situation.

Alternatively, the server could receive, establish, or otherwise obtainreference fingerprints specifically for channel-distinguishing content(such as local commercial content or news programming) correspondingwith respective known channels and could use that reference fingerprintdata as a basis to detect a single-match situation that could serve todisambiguate a multi-match situation. For instance, the server could beprovided with a commercial or news program that is specific to just asingle channel (e.g., that is scheduled to air on just a singlechannel), and the server could generate a reference fingerprint of thatcommercial or news program and store it in reference data 24 along withan indication of the single associated channel. Or the server couldreceive and store such a reference fingerprint along with an indicationof the single associated channel. The server could then compare areceived query fingerprint with the reference fingerprint of thatchannel-distinguishing content and thereby detect a single-match, so asto facilitate multi-match disambiguation.

Note that while the discussion herein focuses primarily on server 20identifying a multi-match situation and then disambiguating based onconsideration of context, some or all of the operations described couldalternatively be carried out by one or more other entities, in place ofor in cooperation with the server.

For instance, one or more of the operations could be carried out by themedia presentation device itself or by an adjunct system in localcommunication with the media presentation device. By way of example, themedia presentation device itself could be provisioned with or haveaccess to reference data like that described above, and the mediapresentation device could itself refer to the reference data to identifya multi-match situation, to disambiguate, and to identify the channelthat provides the media content being rendered by the media presentationdevice. Further, for efficiency, the media presentation device could beprovided with a set of reference data specifically for the group ofchannels that match a query fingerprint (e.g., in response to the serverdetecting a multi-match situation involving those channels), and themedia presentation device could then perform disambiguation itself bymaking comparisons between such reference data and subsequently derivedquery fingerprints. Still further, the media presentation device couldthen itself take channel-specific action, such as presentingchannel-specific content, recording channel presentation, or the like,or could cause one or more other entities to take such action.

In addition, while the foregoing discussion mentions commercial contentand news programming as examples of channel-distinguishing content thatcould help facilitate multi-match disambiguation, other examples arepossible as well. For instance, if the channel being rendered by themedia presentation device includes multiple tracks, such as a videotrack and an audio track, the multi-match might be with respect to oneof the tracks but the single-match that facilitates multi-matchdisambiguation might be with respect to another one of the tracks.

As a specific example of this, the server might detect a videomulti-match situation by detecting that a fingerprint of video contentbeing rendered by the media presentation device matches multiplereference fingerprints corresponding respectively with multiplechannels. But the server might further detect a single-match situationby detecting that a fingerprint of audio content being rendered by themedia presentation device matches just one reference fingerprintcorresponding with just a single one of the multiple channels. As aresult, the server could conclude that the single channel is the channelthat the media presentation device is rendering, so as to facilitatetaking channel-specific action.

FIG. 4 is next a flow chart depicting a method that can be carried outin line with the discussion above. One or more of the operations in themethod depicted by FIG. 4 could be carried out by one or more entities,including, without limitation, a network server, a media presentationdevice, and/or one or more entities operating on behalf of or incooperation with these or other entities. Any such entity could embody acomputing system, such as a programmed processing unit or the like,configured to carry out one or more of the method operations. Further, anon-transitory data storage (e.g., disc storage, flash storage, or othercomputer readable medium) could have stored thereon instructionsexecutable by a processing unit to carry out the various depictedoperations.

As shown in FIG. 4, at block 40, the method includes a computing systemdetermining that a fingerprint of a first segment of media content beingrendered by a media presentation device matches multiple referencefingerprints each corresponding with a different respective channel. Atblock 42, the method then includes, responsive to at least determiningthat the fingerprint of the first segment matches the multiple referencefingerprints each corresponding with a different respective channel,performing disambiguation based at least in part on a determination thata fingerprint of a second segment of the media content being rendered bythe media presentation device matches a reference fingerprintcorresponding with just a single channel, the disambiguationestablishing that the media presentation device is receiving the mediacontent on the single channel. And at block 44, the method includestaking action based on the establishing that the media presentationdevice is receiving the media content on the single channel.

As discussed above, where the computing system is a server or otherentity other than the media presentation device, the media presentationdevice could generate the first and second segments of the media contentbeing rendered by the media presentation device, and the computingsystem could receive those fingerprints from the media presentationdevice.

Further, in an example implementation, the multiple referencefingerprints could be selected from a plurality of referencefingerprints in reference data, in which case determining that thefingerprint of the first segment of the media content being rendered bythe media presentation device matches the multiple referencefingerprints could involve (i) comparing the fingerprint of the firstsegment of media content being rendered by the media presentation devicewith the plurality of reference fingerprints in the reference data, and(ii) based on the comparing, determining that the fingerprint of thefirst segment of the media content being rendered by the mediapresentation device matches the multiple reference fingerprints.

Still further, the method could also include detecting and flagging amulti-match group comprising the multiple reference fingerprints, inwhich case the act of determining that the fingerprint of the firstsegment of the media content being rendered by the media presentationdevice matches the multiple reference fingerprints could involvedetermining that the fingerprint of the first segment of the mediacontent being rendered by the media presentation device matches thereference fingerprints of the flagged multi-match group.

Also in line with the discussion above, the method could include makingthe determination that the fingerprint of the second segment of themedia content being rendered by the media presentation device matches areference fingerprint corresponding with just a single channel. Forinstance, the method could include (i) comparing the fingerprint of thesecond segment of the media content being rendered by the mediapresentation device with at least each of reference fingerprint of themultiple reference fingerprints, and (ii) based on the comparing,determining that the fingerprint of the second segment of the mediacontent being rendered by the media presentation device matches just asingle one of the multiple reference fingerprints.

In addition, the reference fingerprint corresponding with just a singlechannel could be or include a reference fingerprint representingchannel-distinguishing content specific to the single channel, in whichcase the act of making the determination that the fingerprint of thesecond segment of the media content being rendered by the mediapresentation device matches a reference fingerprint corresponding withjust a single channel could involve comparing the fingerprint of thesecond segment of the media content being rendered by the mediapresentation device with the reference fingerprint representing thatchannel-distinguishing content.

Further, as also discussed above, the first and second segments of themedia content being rendered by the media presentation device could befirst and second respective time segments of the media content beingrendered by the media presentation device. And the first time segmentcould be before the second time segment, or the second time segmentcould be before the first time segment.

And as additionally discussed above, the action taken based on theestablishing that the media presentation device is receiving the mediacontent on the single channel could include (i) causing supplementalchannel-specific content to be presented in conjunction with the mediacontent being rendered by the media presentation device, and/or (ii)recording presentation of the single channel for use in a channelratings system, or could take other forms.

FIG. 5 is next another flow chart depicting a method that can be carriedout in line with the discussion above, which could similarly beimplemented by one or more entities and/or embodied on a non-transitorydata storage as discussed above.

As shown in FIG. 5, at block 50, the method includes a computing systemcomparing (i) query fingerprint data representing sequential timesegments of media content being rendered by a media presentation devicewith (ii) reference fingerprint data respectively for each of aplurality of known channels of media content. And at block 52, themethod includes, based on the comparing with respect to a first one ormore of the time segments of the media content being rendered by themedia presentation device, the computing system detecting a multi-match,where the media content rendered by the media presentation devicematches multiple ones of the plurality of channels of media content.Further, at block 54 (which could occur before block 52), the methodincludes, based on the comparing with respect to a second one or more ofthe time segments of the media content being rendered by the mediapresentation device, the computing system detecting a single-match,where the media content rendered by the media presentation devicematches just a single one of the multiple channels of media content.

At block 56, the method then includes the computing system using thedetected single-match to disambiguate the detected multi-match,establishing that the single channel of media content is the channelcarrying the media content being rendered by the media presentationdevice. And at block 58, the method includes taking action based on theestablishing that the single channel is the channel carrying the mediacontent being rendered by the media presentation device.

Features discussed above can be applied in this method as well, and viceversa. For instance, the single-match could be with respect to mediacontent selected from the group consisting of commercial content andnews programming. And each of the first one or more time segments couldbe before each of the second one or more time segments, or each of thesecond one or more time segments could be before each of the first oneor more time segments. Further, the action taken based on theestablishing that the single channel is the channel carrying the mediacontent being rendered by the media presentation device could takevarious forms as discussed above. And the method could be carried out atleast in part by the media presentation device, such as with the mediapresentation device accessing reference data for the multiple channelsto facilitate disambiguating the multi-match as discussed above.

FIG. 6 is next a simplified block diagram of an example system operablein accordance with the present disclosure. This system could represent anetwork server as described above, and/or one or more other entities(possibly including the media presentation device). As shown in FIG. 6,the example system includes a network communication interface 60, aprocessing unit 62, non-transitory data storage 64, any or all of whichcould be integrated together or, as shown, communicatively linkedtogether by a system bus, network, or other connection mechanism 66.

Network communication interface 60 could comprise one or more physicalnetwork connection mechanisms to facilitate communication on a networksuch as network 22 discussed above, and/or for engaging in direct ornetworked communication with one or more other local or remote entities.As such, the network communication interface could comprise a wirelessor wired Ethernet interface or other type of network interface, forengaging in IP communication and/or other type of network communication.

Processing unit 62, could then comprise one or more general purposeprocessors (e.g., microprocessors) and/or one or more specializedprocessors (e.g., application specific integrated circuits). Andnon-transitory data storage 64 could comprise one or more volatileand/or non-volatile storage components, such as optical, magnetic, orflash storage.

As shown, data storage 64 then stores program instructions 68, whichcould be executable by processing unit 62 to carry out variousoperations described herein. For example, the program instructions couldbe executable to (i) receive from a media presentation device, via thenetwork communication interface, a fingerprint of media content beingrendered by the media presentation device, (ii) determine that thereceived fingerprint matches multiple reference fingerprints eachcorresponding with a different respective channel, (iii) responsive todetermining that the received fingerprint matches the multiple referencefingerprints each corresponding with a different respective channel,perform disambiguation based at least in part on a determination that asegment of the received fingerprint matches a reference fingerprintcorresponding with just a single channel, the disambiguationestablishing that the single channel carries the media content beingrendered by the media presentation device, and (iv) take action based onthe establishing that the single channel carries the media content beingrendered by the media presentation device. Various features describedabove could be applied in this context as well.

Finally, FIG. 7 is a simplified block diagram of an example mediapresentation device operable in accordance with the present disclosure.In line with the discussion above, this media presentation device couldtake various forms. For instance, it could be a television, computermonitor, or other device that operates to receive and render videocontent, and/or it could be a loudspeaker, a pair of headphones, orother device that operates to receive and render audio content. Numerousother examples are possible as well.

As shown in FIG. 7, the example media presentation device includes amedia input interface 70, a media presentation interface 72, a networkcommunication interface 74, a processing unit 76, and non-transitorydata storage 78, any or all of which could be integrated together or, asshown, communicatively linked together by a system bus, network, orother connection mechanism 80.

Media input interface 70 could comprise a physical communicationinterface for receiving media content to be presented by the mediapresentation device. As such, the media input interface could includeone or more wired and/or wireless interfaces for establishingcommunication with and receiving media content in analog or digital formfrom a receiver or other device or system. For example, the media inputinterface could include one or more interfaces compliant with protocolssuch as DVI, HDMI, VGA, USB, BLUETOOTH, WIFI, among numerous others.

Media presentation interface 72 could then comprise one or morecomponents to facilitate presentation of the received media content. Byway of example, the media presentation interface could comprise a userinterface such as a display screen and/or a loudspeaker, as well as oneor more drivers or other components for processing the received mediacontent to facilitate presentation of the content on the user interface.

Network communication interface 74 could comprise a physical networkconnection mechanism to facilitate communication on a network such asnetwork 22 discussed above, and/or for engaging in direct or networkedcommunication with one or more other local or remote entities. As such,the network communication interface could comprise a wireless or wiredEthernet interface or other type of network interface, for engaging inIP communication and/or other type of network communication.

Processing unit 76 could then comprise one or more general purposeprocessors (e.g., microprocessors) and/or one or more specializedprocessors (e.g., application specific integrated circuits). Andnon-transitory data storage 78 could comprise one or more volatileand/or non-volatile storage components, such as optical, magnetic, orflash storage. Further, as shown, data storage 78 stores programinstructions 82, which could be executable by processing unit 76 tocarry out various operations described here. For example, the programinstructions could be executable to generate on an ongoing basis afingerprint of media content being rendered by the media presentationdevice, based on analysis of the media content being received at themedia input interface 70 and/or being processed at the mediapresentation interface, and to provide the generated fingerprint on anongoing basis to facilitate channel identification as described herein.

Exemplary embodiments have been described above. Those skilled in theart will understand, however, that changes and modifications may be madeto these embodiments without departing from the true scope and spirit ofthe invention.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method comprising: determining, by a computingsystem, that a digital fingerprint of a first segment of media contentbeing rendered by a media presentation device matches multiple referencefingerprints each corresponding with a different respective channel;after determining that the digital fingerprint of the first segmentmatches the multiple reference fingerprints each corresponding with adifferent respective channel, performing by the computing systemdisambiguation based at least in part on a determination that a digitalfingerprint of a second segment of the media content being rendered bythe media presentation device matches a reference fingerprintcorresponding with just a single channel, the disambiguationestablishing that the media presentation device is receiving the mediacontent on the single channel, wherein the first and second segments ofthe media content being rendered by the media presentation device arefirst and second respective time segments of the media content beingrendered by the media presentation device, wherein the second timesegment is before the first time segment; and taking action by thecomputing system based on the establishing that the media presentationdevice is receiving the media content on the single channel.
 2. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the second segment of the media content beingrendered by the media presentation device comprises content selectedfrom the group consisting of commercial content and news programming. 3.The method of claim 1, wherein the computing system is an entity otherthan the media presentation device, and wherein the digital fingerprintsof the first and second segments of the media content being rendered bythe media presentation device are generated by the media presentationdevice, the method further comprising: receiving by the computingsystem, from the media presentation device, the digital fingerprints ofthe first and second segments of the media content being rendered by themedia presentation device.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein themultiple reference fingerprints are selected from a plurality ofreference fingerprints in reference data, and wherein determining thatthe fingerprint of the first segment of the media content being renderedby the media presentation device matches the multiple referencefingerprints comprises: comparing the digital fingerprint of the firstsegment of media content being rendered by the media presentation devicewith the plurality of reference fingerprints in the reference data, andbased on the comparing, determining that the digital fingerprint of thefirst segment of the media content being rendered by the mediapresentation device matches the multiple reference fingerprints.
 5. Themethod of claim 1, further comprising detecting and flagging amulti-match group comprising the multiple reference fingerprints,wherein determining that the digital fingerprint of the first segment ofthe media content being rendered by the media presentation devicematches the multiple reference fingerprints comprises determining thatthe digital fingerprint of the first segment of the media content beingrendered by the media presentation device matches the referencefingerprints of the flagged multi-match group.
 6. The method of claim 1,further comprising making the determination that the digital fingerprintof the second segment of the media content being rendered by the mediapresentation device matches a reference fingerprint corresponding withjust the single channel, wherein making the determination comprises:comparing the digital fingerprint of the second segment of the mediacontent being rendered by the media presentation device with at leasteach of reference fingerprint of the multiple reference fingerprints,and based on the comparing, determining that the digital fingerprint ofthe second segment of the media content being rendered by the mediapresentation device matches just a single one of the multiple referencefingerprints.
 7. The method of claim 1, wherein the referencefingerprint corresponding with just the single channel comprises areference fingerprint representing channel-distinguishing contentspecific to the single channel, the method further comprising: makingthe determination that the digital fingerprint of the second segment ofthe media content being rendered by the media presentation devicematches the reference fingerprint corresponding with just the singlechannel, wherein making the determination comprises comparing thedigital fingerprint of the second segment of the media content beingrendered by the media presentation device with the reference fingerprintrepresenting the channel-distinguishing content.
 8. The method of claim1, wherein taking action based on the establishing that the mediapresentation device is receiving the media content on the single channelcomprises causing supplemental channel-specific content to be presentedin conjunction with the media content being rendered by the mediapresentation device.
 9. The method of claim 1, carried out at least inpart by the media presentation device.
 10. The method of claim 1,wherein taking action based on the establishing that the mediapresentation device is receiving the media content on the single channelcomprises recording presentation of the single channel for use in achannel ratings system.
 11. A method comprising: comparing, by acomputing system, (i) query digital fingerprint data representingsequential time segments of media content being rendered by a mediapresentation device with (ii) reference fingerprint data respectivelyfor each of a plurality of known channels of media content; based on thecomparing with respect to a first one or more of the time segments ofthe media content being rendered by the media presentation device,detecting by the computing system a multi-match, where the media contentrendered by the media presentation device matches multiple ones of theplurality of channels of media content; based on the comparing withrespect to a second one or more of the time segments of the mediacontent being rendered by the media presentation device, detecting bythe computing system a single-match, where the media content rendered bythe media presentation device matches just a single one of the multiplechannels of media content, wherein each of the second time one or moresegments is before each of the first one or more time segments; using bythe computing system the detected single-match to disambiguate thedetected multi-match, establishing that the single channel of mediacontent is the channel carrying the media content being rendered by themedia presentation device; and taking action by the computing systembased on the establishing that the single channel is the channelcarrying the media content being rendered by the media presentationdevice.
 12. The method of claim 11, wherein the single-match is withrespect to media content selected from the group consisting ofcommercial content and news programming.
 13. The method of claim 11,wherein taking action based on the establishing that the single channelis the channel carrying the media content being rendered by the mediapresentation device comprises causing supplemental channel-specificcontent to be presented in conjunction with the media content beingrendered by the media presentation device.
 14. The method of claim 11,carried out at least in part by the media presentation device.
 15. Themethod of claim 14, further comprising the media presentation deviceaccessing reference data for the multiple channels, to facilitatedisambiguating the detected multi-match.
 16. The method of claim 11,wherein taking action based on the establishing that the single channelis the channel carrying the media content being rendered by the mediapresentation device comprises recording presentation of the singlechannel for use in a channel ratings system.
 17. A system comprising: anetwork communication interface; a processing unit; non-transitory datastorage; and program instructions stored in the non-transitory datastorage and executable by the processing unit to carry out operationsincluding: receiving from a media presentation device, via the networkcommunication interface, first digital fingerprint data representingfirst one or more segments of media content being rendered by the mediapresentation device, determining that the received first digitalfingerprint data matches multiple reference fingerprints eachcorresponding with a different respective channel, after determiningthat the received first digital fingerprint data matches the multiplereference fingerprints each corresponding with a different respectivechannel, performing disambiguation based at least in part on an earlierdetermination that second digital fingerprint data representing secondone or more segments of the media content being rendered by the mediapresentation device matches a reference fingerprint corresponding withjust a single channel, the disambiguation establishing that the singlechannel carries the media content being rendered by the mediapresentation device, and taking action based on the establishing thatthe single channel carries the media content being rendered by the mediapresentation device.
 18. The system of claim 17, wherein the second oneor more segments of the media content being rendered by the mediapresentation device comprises media content selected from the groupconsisting of commercial content and news programming.
 19. The system ofclaim 17, wherein taking action based on the establishing that thesingle channel carries the media content being rendered by the mediapresentation device comprises causing supplemental channel-specificcontent to be presented in conjunction with the media content beingrendered by the media presentation device.
 20. The system of claim 17,wherein taking action based on the establishing that the mediapresentation device is receiving the media content on the single channelcomprises recording presentation of the single channel for use in achannel ratings system.